Built in 2020, Reviewed in 2023: A Pavilion Story from Indiana
In 2020, the Zimmerman family in Indiana took on a true backyard adventure: building their own DIY timber pavilion—a project that became the heart of their home.
They didn’t hire a local crew. They rolled up their sleeves and installed it themselves. Post by post. Beam by beam. The way families used to raise barns together—except this time, the wood came precision-cut, ready to slot into place, as though it had been waiting for their backyard all along.
With Western Timber Frame’s The Dovetail Difference® joinery, even a DIY timber pavilion can rise with strength and precision. All it takes is a couple of friends, a few ladders, and a free Saturday.
Building It Themselves
There’s something unforgettable about seeing a structure rise on your own land, especially when you’re the one tightening the bolts and setting the beams. With timber framing, that moment carries even more weight.
There’s something unforgettable about seeing a structure rise on your own land, especially when you’re the one steadying the ladder, feeling the grain of the wood beneath your hands.
Timber framing has always carried a kind of theatre to it. The beams don’t just meet—they greet one another, locked in a conversation of wood-to-wood joinery that’s older than power tools, older than the neighborhood itself. The Dovetail Difference® makes those connections sing: the posts lock in with a solid knock of wood against wood, rafters slide home with the certainty of a key turning in its lock. Each piece finding its place, as though it always knew.
That’s why families like the Zimmermans could build their pavilion with their own hands. A couple of ladders, a friend or two, and suddenly the backyard becomes a stage—each rafter lifted skyward. Old-world craft reimagined for a modern Saturday afternoon, but carrying the same promise it always has: a structure that will outlast its builders, and tell their story long after.
Swings hung beneath the beams, circling the fire pit. A vent in the roof carried woodsmoke into autumn air. The pavilion became more than shelter—it became the family’s favorite seat in the house.
“You Could Hang a Car on Our Beams”
The Zimmermans had asked local builders before, but most said no to swings on a pavilion. Too risky, too heavy.
Western Timber Frame’s designer didn’t flinch.
“You could hang a car on our beams,” he said.
Three years later, in 2023, the family finally left a review—and their words still carry the same sense of amazement. Best in class. Their pavilion has lived up to every promise.
Why Waiting Three Years Matters
Anyone can leave a review the week after their project is finished. Fresh sawdust makes everything look perfect.
But the Zimmerman family waited three years. Three Indiana winters. Three long humid summers. Three seasons of backyard fires, swings, and stories under the timber frame.
And then—they wrote: “We couldn’t be happier.”
That kind of review doesn’t just tell a story of installation. It tells a story of endurance.
A Pavilion That Keeps on Giving
The Zimmerman pavilion isn’t just wood and hardware. Chains sing on their hinges, swings moving in rhythm. The fire whispers late into the night. Overhead, timber beams hold the roof steady—a shelter for voices, laughter, and time itself.
And it’s proof that when families build together, they don’t just build a structure—they build a story that continues year after year.
Key Project Details (For the Timber Curious)
- Size: 16′ 4″ x 16′ Pavilion (8,000 Series)
- Style: Traditional, Douglas Fir, Early American stain
- Special Features: Privacy wall, fire pit, vented roof, multiple swings, TimberVolt® Inferno power posts
Final Thought
The Zimmermans’ story shows how a DIY timber pavilion isn’t just about saving on installation—it’s about building memories with your own hands.
